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Wiretap bill a 'slippery slope,' say local attorneys

By Lisa Redmond, lredmond@lowellsun.com

Updated:
01/30/2013 06:35:10 AM EST

BOSTON -- Local attorneys are wary about a push by state legislators and law enforcement to expand the state wiretap law to allow police to secretly record suspects in murder investigations and other violent crimes, not just organized-crime figures.

Under a pending bill, authorities would still need a warrant to wiretap suspects, but the targets would not have to be members of an organized crime outfit, such as the Mafia, according to state Attorney General Martha Coakley.

Instead, the goal of this update is to "combat street, gang and gun violence and modernize an outdated law to better address the public safety challenges of the 21st century," Coakley said.

"Our current wiretap law has not been updated since 1968; it's like asking our police to continue on horses and buggies after criminals began driving around in cars," Coakley said in a statement.

"This bill is a common-sense step forward to keep our communities safe from gun and street violence, human trafficking, and other violent crimes."

Middlesex District Attorney Gerard Leone agreed.

"I support these efforts to provide much needed updates to our state's wiretap laws. This bill is an important step to give law enforcement the tools we need to keep our communities safe from gun and street violence, combat human trafficking, and investigate terrorist threats," Leone said in a statement.

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But Lowell defense attorney Michael Talty said, "Privacy rights are essential to a free society. Unless the public remains concerned about protecting those rights, we move further toward a police state.''

Lowell-area attorney Roland Milliard said he agrees with Boston defense lawyer Jeffrey Denner, who said any attempt to add categories of suspects who could be subject to a wiretap is a "slippery slope.''

The bill would also update the definition of "wire communication" to clarify that the law covers "advances in communication technology, including cellphones, to ensure that all forms of wire communications are covered regardless of the ever-changing technological devices we see in the market," the summary states.

It would also extend the length of a wiretap from 15 days to 30 days, which is similar with federal law.

The proposal comes after two justices on the state Supreme Judicial Court urged legislators in April 2011 to change state wiretap law to expand police surveillance powers for investigations of violent street crime.

In the current law, the words "in connection with organized crime" means that electronic surveillance can't be used to investigate and prosecute shootings and killings committed by street gangs in the state, Justice Ralph D. Gants wrote.

Gants said those crimes are difficult to solve and prosecute using more traditional means of investigation.

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